


Never Will I Forget

by Spring_Emerald



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Afterlife, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 12:55:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3068780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spring_Emerald/pseuds/Spring_Emerald
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been a long time, but I still remember us.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never Will I Forget

Kakashi felt, more than knew, that something was wrong the moment his senses and supposedly long dead ninja instincts woke him.

For starters, it wasn’t raining, and if there is something constant in this current plane that he’s living in, it was the torrential pouring of never ending rain.

The plane, wherever it is, is very much like Konoha. At least, he assumed it was. Aside from being a bleak and mocking version of it, what with the pouring rain and damning mud, this version never seemed to expand beyond the landscape occupied by the Memorial Stone. He tried going farther than what he could see, but as curious as it is, this place doesn’t seem too keen in letting him leave the cemetery. The places he knows that are around and beyond are covered by downcast clouds and thick fog.

Time, however, is not an issue in the place. It was neither day nor night, just rainy. If he were still alive, he would akin it to a midday storm. One knows that it’s supposed to be a sunny afternoon, but it’s not because of a heavy downpour.

Kakashi hated the place at first. He glared hatefully at the Memorial Stone, itching to turn the smooth, onyx slab into dust. Even in his afterlife, the ghosts of his deeds and his dead, still haunt him, intent on not letting him have his peace. But as the great ninja that he is ( _was_ ), he learned to live with it. It was not heaven, but it was not hell. He sure deserved something more gruesome than being wet all the time, but he didn’t, so he’ll take it. After all, who was he to complain?

He surmised that he may be in a same plane as his father when he met him during his temporary death experience in the hands of Pein. At least a less dark and wetter version. What sucks though is that he’ll be stuck here, waiting for forgiveness he was certain would never come. After all, the people he longed to apologize to are all dead. They all died before him. Who could he ask forgiveness from? Or rather, who could still give it to him?

A person came to mind, but was quickly dismissed, for having that person here would mean that person’s death. Besides, that person would have a very special place in heaven. Why would he be in place like this with Kakashi?

To distract himself from going further with such thoughts, he shifted his position on the branch of the favorite tree he likes to perch on, the one that has a good view of the Memorial Stone, waiting for an attack. It was a silly notion, for he has been here for a long time, and no one has ever come to kill him. Which, in itself was an impossibility since he’s already dead.

How he could feel alive in a place for the dead is a mystery he never got to solve, no matter the immeasurable time he has. He’s not really sure how he is able to feel the rain drops and get wet, let alone feel the need to sleep, and even more baffling, to still wake up. But he is, he does, unflinchingly, for the long time he has been here.

He took stock of himself the moment he woke up in this place. He doesn’t have a heartbeat, but he breathes. His senses are all intact. He could see, with both eyes. He could hear the pouring rain. He could smell, in fact, the damp earth and mud. But he never gets hungry, and doesn’t actually feel the need to relieve himself.

He exists, but does not live. Maybe not much different from his previous life, after all.

Even then, these musings does not answer his pressing question. Why wasn’t it raining?

Then came the unusual sounds, in which Kakashi couldn’t help but open his eyes in surprise - the distant sound of fluttering wings and birds chirping. In his initial surprise, it didn’t register to him that the once clouded area around and beyond are now slowly becoming visible, made possible by the slowly rising sun.

He almost fell out of his perch. In his life, few things surprised him. In his death, he thought nothing ever could. But this, this is just another level of weird. It was a good thing that he is an expert on weird. He dusted himself and set out to explore this sudden change in the plane. After all, when a shinobi wants answers, they do reconnaissance first.

\----------

_And with these eyes, I see that life has done you well_

_You’ve seized and captured every moment_

_Life’s mysteries unfolded…_

_After the darkness, light will come along,_

_And all the pain it cause for good and gone._

_Just a little emotional, the future is bright…_

\----------

He wandered around the town, taking in the beauty of the village he never thought he would see again. If he’s being honest with himself, he never saw Konoha this lively, this warm. Even in its glory days, his view of his village was never this animated.

Which could only mean that it’s not entirely his.

And there was only one possible person who could see, would have seen Konoha like this. With a sudden jolt, Kakashi turned back and ambled to a familiar road that led to an apartment building in the chuunin housing area.

The road that led home.

The road that led to Iruka.

\----------

He was quite disappointed, to say the least. But at the same time, he felt a little bittersweet. Iruka not being in his apartment in this plane in the afterlife could mean that the other man was still alive. And really, after the long time Kakashi has been alone in here, he wouldn’t wish for anything else for the man he loves, than to have a long and happy life, in the world of the living.

All the same, whether Iruka was here or not, it was still good to be back in a friendlier territory. It was during these moments that he felt truly grateful for having the Sharingan. If not for it, it wouldn’t be easy to reminisce. It would not be easy for Kakashi to remember the man he loves. Though, Iruka would certainly be someone truly unforgettable. But he didn’t expect the memories to come this easily. It goes to show how familiar and how safe he felt with Iruka.

The apartment looked the same. Not even speckled with dust. The frames with pictures of Iruka’s makeshift family and of them were still on top of the shelf, and still seem it is seeing better days.

A thought crossed Kakashi’s mind, and he smiled. Maybe, the time for waiting is almost over.

He spent the night in Iruka’s apartment. Well, shared apartment, since he’s taken to living with Iruka during his life. The bed still smelled liked Iruka and for that he was grateful. There was a sudden anticipation in the air. Whatever he was waiting for, he was not sure, but he did have a good feeling about it.

\----------

The plane remained to be the warm Konoha for a few days now. After days of aimlessly wandering and sightseeing, visiting familiar places, it was easy for Kakashi to go back to his routine. He would sometimes spend the day on top of the Hokage monument, overlooking the whole village, and he would feel peace. After spending some time brooding, he would go to the Memorial Stone.

He was the first person Kakashi had seen in this plane ever since it turned to the vivacious version of Konoha. The old man in front of the Memorial Stone has a sense of calmness surrounding his being. He has gray hair, tied loosely at the base of his neck, and his shoulders are hunched towards the onyx stone. It was easy to tell that he was offering prayers.

Kakashi approached the man carefully, afraid to ruin anything. He has had a lot of time being socially inept during his life, and he’s not about to scare the first human (or is it a ghost?) contact he could have by being overexcited in meeting him, whether he’s an illusion or not.

The man however, stood a little straighter, when he felt the presence behind him. Kakashi was taken quite aback, but then again he wasn’t hiding it. He had to wait for a few heartbeats before the man turned to look at him.

On a hindsight, the long hair tied at the base of the neck was a (dead) give away. As was the same familiar crinkle at the side of his eyes and above his mouth.

He was old and wrinkled but the dark and warm brown eyes remained the same. It became even more striking as he smiled.

“Iruka…” he whispered in disbelief. Even then, he couldn’t have gotten to Iruka fast enough because one moment, they were standing apart, taking each other in, then the next moment, he already have Iruka in his arms, in a tight and long-awaited hug.

“Kakashi,” Iruka uttered affectionately, his voice a tad raspier than usual, but remained melodic. Kakashi never realized how much he wanted to hear the other man say his name again until it left his lips, and that spoken name conveyed enough, more than enough, than other words could have.

Nothing could compare to the feeling of having Iruka in his arms again, breathing in his scent and experiencing his warmth.

For the first time in a long time, Kakashi truly felt home.

\----------

_Long time, no see… I have been waiting_

_A long time to be, away from each other_

_It’s been a long time, but I still remember us,_

_I still remember…_

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all! *waves*
> 
> Please hear me out before you throw tomatoes at me, for my pathetic attempt at writing KakaIru. 
> 
> I'm a long-time lurker in the fandom, and had summed up the courage to post this work, as it has been sitting in my drive for a while now. It's New Year after all, so I can just dismiss this as a horror of the past...  
> I do hope that you had fun reading this, although, fun is not suppose to be the emotion it should elicit, but yeah... 
> 
> Anyway, a short background about this short fic:  
> The whole premise of the story was inspired by a song of the same title, by a local band in my place, Urbandub. Some lines of the song are even included here. So if you want to hear the song for yourselves, then do check it out. The calling muse was so hard for me to ignore that it got my rusty gears spinning, and thus this fanfic was born.  
> It got even stronger, when Naruto ended, and as much the fandom don't want to talk about the infamous last chapter, it did give us some pretty good insight about how older ninjas such as Kakashi and Iruka grew old and settled to a peaceful (secretly blissfully married) life so yeah... I guess that's all? 
> 
> And hey! If you've reached this part and have read my senseless rambling before this, and the even more senseless story before it, then I seriously think you are an awesome person. Have some cookies! 
> 
> Thanks a lot! Keep Calm and Kakairu guys! Until next time (I hope...)


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